Inhibition of casein kinase 2 disrupts differentiation of myeloid cells in cancer and enhances the efficacy of immunotherapy in mice

The role of myeloid cells as regulators of tumor progression that significantly impact the efficacy of cancer immunotherapies makes them an attractive target for inhibition. Here we explore the effect of a novel, potent, and selective inhibitor of serine/threonine protein kinase CK2 on modulating myeloid cells in the tumor microenvironment. Although inhibition of CK2 caused only a modest effect on dendritic cells in tumor-bearing mice, it substantially reduced the amount of polymorphonuclear myeloid-derived suppressor cells (PMN-MDSC) and tumor-associated macrophages (TAM). This effect was not caused by the induction of apoptosis, but rather by a block of differentiation. Our results implicated downregulation of CCAAT-enhancer binding protein-α (C/EBPα) in this effect. Although CK2 inhibition did not directly affect tumor cells, it dramatically enhanced the antitumor activity of immune checkpoint receptor blockade using anti-CTLA-4 antibody. These results suggest a potential role of CK2 inhibitors in combination therapies against cancer.

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